Aurora
by TyedyeLongshadow
Summary: The story of a girl who falls hopelessly in love with Tom Marvolo Riddle. She knows he doesn't love anyone, but maybe she can be the exception.
1. Advice from a Hat

It has always been said that Tom Riddle was incredibly handsome, so I'm sure some girl at Hogwarts fell madly in love with him. In this story, that girl is Aurora Sweeney.

Disclaimer: The only thing I own are the characters I made up. All other credit goes to J.K. Rowling.

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Aurora had never believed in love at first sight, until she first saw him. He had to be the most handsome boy she had ever seen, and even at 11, she had seen a lot of handsome boys. He had a pale, narrow face, deep brown eyes, and hair the color of the night sky. He stood out from the crowd. Not only was he handsome, but confident, not at all afraid of the upcoming sorting ceremony. She on the other hand, was trembling out of nervousness. She hoped he didn't notice her, the shy little girl with thin, brown hair and freckles, who at this point must be shaking like her neighbor's pet chihuahua. He didn't seem to be paying attention to anyone. While the other kids were talking amongst themselves, he stood stone-faced and alone.

"You like him don't you?" Jane asked her. She had only just met Jane that day, but they had already declared each other best friends. The sound of her voice calmed her down, but her question put her on edge.

"So what if I do?"

"I'll admit, he's pretty cute, but I don't know. Something doesn't seem right about him."

"What's wrong with him?"

"Well I don't know for sure, but rumor has it that he's from an orphanage. A muggle orphanage." She drops her voice, as though she was sharing something highly confidential "I heard he's a half blood."

"Does that really matter?"

"Maybe not to you, but I would never be caught dead with a half blood." She says, making a disgusted face.

They were then ushered into the great hall to be sorted. Aurora's parents had never exaggerated its beauty. It was the most magnificent thing any of the first years had ever seen, they gaped at its beauty. Even the stone-faced boy had trouble hiding his amazement of it's grandeur. She looked around, taking in the new scene, but her eyes would never stay on anything too long before finding their way back to that boy. The sorting began. She watched as her classmates went up one by one to be sorted into houses. Jane got sorted to Slytherin, no surprise there, it was all she could talk about on the train ride. Another girl she knew went to Ravenclaw, another Hufflepuff. Then they called him.

"Tom Riddle," he sauntered up to the front of the room. The hat had barely touched his head before shouting Slytherin. He seemed pleased, a thin smile formed on his narrow face. A few more kids were sorted before it was her turn.

"Aurora Sweeney," She nervously approached the hat and placed it on her head. The unfamiliar faces watched her, waiting for something to happen. She was uncomfortable with having all the eyes in the room on her. This is what she was nervous about, she hated being stared at. It was only made worse when the boy, Tom, started staring at her too.

"You show promise. Gryffindor would be good for you, but you don't want to be in Gryffindor, do you?" The hat said in a quiet voice only she could hear.

"No, I want to be in Slytherin." She whispered back.

"Slytherin, a fine choice I say. I do warn you dear, you want in for all the wrong reasons. He will never understand what you are feeling." it said quietly, then loudly shouted, "SLYTHERIN!" The hat's ominous warning didn't sink in to her just yet. Right now she was just relieved people had stopped watching her wear that hat. She sat next to Jane at the Slytherin table.

"I knew you'd be in Slytherin!" Jane said with a smile. She smiled back, happy to be with Jane, but even happier to be with Tom. She tried to forget about him during the feast, but she always found herself glancing his way. Never for very long, she didn't want the others to notice her looking at Tom in admiration. Once when she looked up at him, he was looking back. His dark brown eyes penetrated her hazel ones. He made no notice they were looking at each other. She blushed and while turning away, knocked over a goblet, causing her to blush more.

She wanted to start a conversation with Tom, but she couldn't think of anything to say. She just continued chatting with Jane, who never seemed to be at a loss of words. Aurora wished she could be more like Jane, maybe then Tom would like her. Unfortunately, she wasn't poised and outgoing Jane, but shy and clumsy Aurora. Tom would never like a girl like her.

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And that is the first chapter. I hope you liked it. I'm going to try to get the second chapter up by the end of the weekend, but I make no promises.


	2. Maybe I Can Wake Him

It's Chapter 2. I would've had it up sooner, but my computer doesn't seem to like me much. I couldn't type much more than a sentence before it froze up.

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Aurora was 18 now, almost through her last year at Hogwarts. Today Gryffindor was playing Hufflepuff to see who would win the House Cup. Almost everyone was going. She, however, had never really gotten into the sport, and since Slytherin wasn't playing today, she didn't really want to go. It was raining out anyway; all Aurora wanted to stay indoors, curled up by a fire.

"Aurora!" she heard Matt O'Donnell. Everyone in the Slytherin house knew that Matt liked Aurora, and he wouldn't stop asking her out until she said yes. So far he'd been asking about once a week since their fourth year. She's never said yes. She still had an even more hopeless crush on someone else.

Aurora was no longer constantly nervous. Almost everyone found her funny, charming, and sometimes, too loud. But all the confidence she had gained in the past 7 years was lost when she was with Tom. She wasn't afraid to tell Professor Binns his subject was useless and a waste of her time (resulting in 20 lost points for Slytherin and 2 weeks of detention), but she couldn't say much more than hello to Tom before she lost her voice. They only talked during lessons, and their conversations usually went along the lines of "Do I add the dragon tears before or after the snake venom?" The one time she tried to talk to him outside of class was while they were climbing up stairs. She tripped on a disappearing step. He helped pick up her books, but left before they could talk.

Tom never tried to talk to her. He was a loner. He did have a group of guys that followed him around, but she didn't think Tom considered them to be his friends. She didn't think Tom considered anyone to be his friend. That was a shame, he was more handsome now than first day they met. She discovered over time that he was also incredibly smart and talented.

She knew she wasn't the only one who liked him. She saw the way the other girls looked at him, heard them whisper as he passed them in the halls. A few asked him out. He always turned them down. They were the giggly popular girls who could bounce back quickly from his rejection. Aurora had wanted to ask him out, but was always to afraid to. She wasn't like Matt or those other girls; she wouldn't be able to bounce back from his rejection.

"Aurora, you're going to the Quidditch game right?" Matt asked. She sighed, would he ever give up?

"No Matt, I'm not going to the Quidditch game, and if I was, I wouldn't go with you." He asked her the same thing every Quidditch game, it was routine.

"Are you sure? I mean, I'm not a rowdy fan, especially with Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff. We can sit together, I'll be a perfect gentleman. I won't even touch you."

"Yes Matt I'm sure." Aurora wasn't going. Her N.E.W.T.s were coming up, there was a particularly nasty Transfigurations practice N.E.W.T. on Monday that she needed to study for. She would read a bit of her Transfigurations book, then glance at Tom, sitting across the way. It was safe to assume he wasn't going to the Quidditch match either, he almost never did.

Jane saw her staring, not at her book, but at Tom. "Aurora, we need to talk." She said, and they head to the privacy of the girl's dormitory. "Aurora this infatuation with Tom has to stop. He's no good for you."

"Why? Everyone says he's headed for great things. He could be the next Minister of Magic."

"I suppose, but look at him, he really doesn't have friends. He doesn't like people. He doesn't need you. He's never going to love you, ever. You're going to end up regretting all these years you spent falling over him when there are better guys that actually love you back."

"If you mean Matt, I'm not interested. Even if I have no chance with Tom, I don't like Matt."

"Yes there's Matt, but there's other people too. Think about it Aurora. Matt loves you more than Tom ever has or will."

"If you don't mind, I'd like to get back to my studying. I have a huge test in Transfigurations on Monday and if I don't pass I'm in trouble."

"All right, just remember what I said. I'm really not trying to be mean, Aurora. I'm your best friend, and I'd hate to see you get hurt."

The common room was almost empty when the game started. Just Aurora and Tom remained, both cramming for Monday's test. Tom was quiet, studying intently. Aurora tried to focus on studying, but ideas kept popping in her head. She was alone, with Tom. She might never get an opportunity like this again.

One of her muggle-born friends had told her a story about a princess who shared her name. She was put into a deep sleep by an evil fairy. What woke her up was a kiss from her true love. Aurora thought maybe that's what Tom needed, to be woken up, so to speak, by a kiss. She would open his eyes up; make him see she loved him. She figured she couldn't go wrong. If he did fall in love with her, they'd both be happy together. If not, she only had to face him for a few more weeks. No one would ever know, unless Tom said something, which she highly doubted he will.

She was shaking as she walked up to him. "T-Tom," Aurora started, "Do you think you could explain Lissen's Third Law of Human Transfiguration to me? I still don't quite understand it."

"Sure," He said nonchalantly. He looked at her; she wanted to melt when their eyes met. He started talking, but she wasn't listening. She just watched his lips move, debating when she should move in.

"Do you understand it better now?" he asked. She didn't answer, the words barely registered. She just looked at him, breathing heavy out of nerves. Then she quickly moved her head towards his and their lips met. Aurora had never kissed anyone before, and was terrified as to how Tom would react. He seemed slightly taken aback at first. She doubted he ever thought about kissing anyone before, and was as clueless as her. Then he pulled her closer, and they were locked in a passionate embrace. His passion was short lived. He stopped kissing her shortly after he started.

He had his usual blank expression on his face, she couldn't tell what he thought of their short kiss. "Did you feel anything?" Aurora asked meekly. She didn't have a plan for this, he was either going to take her in or push her away. He was supposed to feel something, happiness or anger or something, not nothing at all.

He simply shook his head, still no emotion on his face. Aurora walked away, blushing ferociously. She gathered her books and hastily walked to her room. She was too embarrassed to be around Tom.

Aurora sobbed alone in her room. She couldn't believe how stupid she had been. She had decided to kiss Tom because of a muggle fairytale. She had laughed when she first heard it, it was funny what muggles thought could be done with magic. There are no fairies that bestow gifts on young children, spindles cannot put people into an enchanted sleep with only a touch, and the only person who tried to be a dragon Animagus is now lying in a coma at St. Mungo's. Aurora knew there was nothing magical about a kiss, but she had wanted to kiss him so badly, not even logic could stop her. Jane was right, he didn't love her. She couldn't believe had spent 7 years fixated on him. She had to move on, however painful it may be. She dried her eyes and opened up her Transfigurations book. She needed this quiet to study.

Students filed back into the common room a few hours later. Hufflepuff had won the house cup for the first time in nearly 50 years, but it was because Gryffindor only had a 130 point lead when the Hufflepuff seeker accidentally caught the snitch while blocking his face from a bludger. It was a very intense game, Aurora heard, not that she cared much. Gryffindor had been their longtime rival, any day they lost was a good day. She wasn't in a mood for celebrating. She saw Tom, still sitting at his table, studying for the Transfigurations test. She tried not to look at him, but old habits are the hardest to break.

"Aurora, Aurora!" Matt called, walking her way, "Did you hear, Hufflepuff won!"

"Yes Matt I heard."

"Well, are you up for some celebrating? I hear Hufflepuff is gonna throw a huge party in the Great Hall tomorrow, will you come with me? Please? You don't even have to call me your date, just a few dances than ditch me for your friends."

She was about to say no, but something stopped her. She used to think Matt was stupid for always asking her out, knowing he'd be turned down. Now she almost thought of him as courageous, but only almost. She now knew how much it hurt to have someone you really love turn you down. She didn't want anyone to ever feel the heartbreak she felt from Tom, especially on her behalf. Even if he was annoying, he deserved a chance."Sure, Matt, I'll go with you."

"Please Aurora, we don't have to dance- wait a minute you said yes."

"Yup, I did."

"You're being serious, right?"

"Yes, I'm serious."

An enormous grin spread on his face "Aurora Sweeney, you've made me the happiest man in the world." He began to shout, "She said yes, she said yes, SHE SAID YES! WOO!" All eyes were on Matt, even Tom was staring at him when he did this ridiculous "victory" song and dance.

"I'm only going to a party with you."

Matt stopped celebrating to talk, "I know, I got a bit carried away there. I always knew one day you'd say yes to me, I just had to break you down. I promise you Aurora, you won't regret this. Ask anyone I'm an amazing dancer."


	3. An Old Friend Stops By

Aurora could have used magic to knit, but she preferred doing it by hand. It helped pass the time, she was waiting for an old friend to stop by.

She was about 50 now. Even though her once brown hair was gray at the roots and she never quite lost the weight she gained from pregnancy, she still looked beautiful. She made an effort to look good, even if she wasn't supposed to leave or make contact with anyone. He was coming soon, and she wanted to look her best.

Jane was the one who tipped her off. She herself was not a Death Eater, but she knew many people who were. "I've heard he's out to get you. I don't know why, but he wants you dead Aurora. He might even want to do it himself." She told her in the strictest of confidence almost two years ago. Aurora was a blood traitor, and spoke a bit too much about muggle rights. Jane and a few of her other friends helped her hide. A week ago, Aurora was told that she had to move, but she said no, she was tired of moving.

"I've put you all in too much danger already, I'm going to stay here." Aurora told Jane when she came with news that You-Know-Who had found her. "He's going to find me eventually, I'd rather it be sooner than later. I can't keep running from him forever. Just promise me that my kids will be safe."

"I don't think he's after them, which is strange, but good news for you. They're in America now, they should be safe there, but Aurora, are you sure about this? It really is no trouble at all to move you."

"Yes, I'm sure Jane."

"Oh, Aurora, I'm going to miss you. Me, Matt, and the kids, we'll all miss you." Jane hugged her lifelong friend and tearfully left.

Aurora knew it wouldn't be long until he came, she was actually surprised he hadn't shown up yet.

They say when you're about to die, your life passes before your eyes. All week she had been reliving the past. She saw her kids board the Hogwarts Express. Her oldest child wouldn't let her go, her youngest couldn't wait to get away. She relived the vacations she took to the beach with her parents as a child. She laughed as she thought of the time she got detention when she was caught out of bed. She remembered when Jane told her she was getting married to Matt O'Donnell, and asked her to be her maid of honor. She thought about her own wedding, the white dress, dancing to Celestina Warbeck, trying not to cry as she said her vows. It was probably the happiest day of her life, marrying Peter. She missed Peter, it had been 5 years now since he died. She always told him smoking was a filthy habit, the healers at St. Mungo's couldn't do anything to fix his blackened lungs. She missed her kids too. It had been nearly a year since she'd seen them. She sent them to America once they finished school. They were both in their 20's now, but she still worried about them. She could only hope they were safe from him there.

* * *

"My Lord, she hasn't moved. She's been there now for a week." A masked man reported fearfully to his master, Lord Voldemort.

"I shouldn't delay this any longer, she's been evading me for two years now." Lord Voldemort replied to his servant.

"You've always had something come up when you tried to kill her."

"Yes, and when I get around to it, she's fled. Not this time."

"My Lord, I would be more than happy to take care of her for you, I know you are busy."

He struck his servant across the face, "NO, she is mine. I shall take care of her."

"Y-yes, my Lord, I'm sorry, I only wanted to help you. I have also located her children in America. Would you like me to go after them?"

"No. Leave the children, leave the husband, I only want her."

"Her husband is dead, my Lord, he has been for some time now. His death was natural, not caused by one of us."

"Still, leave the children. I want her dead, and I must dispose of her myself."

"If you don't mind me asking, my Lord, why is it so important that she is dead?"

"Are you questioning me, your Lord, who could dispose of you right now with the wave of a wand?"

"N-no, not at all, forgive my foolish questioning of your power." He fell to his master's knees as he begged for forgiveness.

"Your presence sickens me." The masked servant gets to his feet and quickly leaves the room. Voldemort lingers for a while, considering letting her live. There wasn't really any harm in letting her live while there were bothersome people to get rid of. He was sure his servants thought him foolish for concentrating so much of his efforts on getting rid of one very miniscule threat, not that he ever cared what his servants thought. If one started to bother him, he could easily find a replacement.

No, she couldn't live, he had to kill her. His hesitation only strengthened the desire.

* * *

Tom Riddle frequently crossed her mind as she reminisced. Aurora hadn't thought about him in a long time, but he was never truly forgotten. The brief kiss they shared was one of her favorites to look back at. She had done many things in her life she regretted. Kissing Tom was not one of them.

She heard a crack come from the front entrance. Someone had apparated in, it was probably him. The footsteps grew louder, soon she saw his shadow in the doorway.

"Hello, I've been expecting you, you're here to kill me right?" She said serenely. Her old friend had finally found her.

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Gotta love cliffhangers. Don't worry, I should have the next chapter up soon. I won't leave you hanging for too long.


	4. The Strong and the Weak

Sorry for the wait. I had this ready to go since Saturday, but kept getting this Error Type 2 message every time I tried to post it. So frustrating. Anyway, the final chapter. Enjoy!

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"Aurora Sweeney, finally I've cornered you in this puny shack. I'm surprised you managed to evade me for so long, you were never that bright." Voldemort said coldly.

"People change Tom." She started, "You certainly aren't the same boy I knew from Hogwarts."

"You dare-"

"Yes Tom, I do dare. I don't care if you go by Voldemort, to me you'll always be Tom Riddle. It doesn't really matter, I'm going to end up dead no matter what I call you. I'd rather not die begging you for mercy." His wand flew from his hand, Voldemort looked confused, then angry. "Nonverbal spells have always been a specialty of mine, it used to drive my kids crazy. I will give you your wand back, then you can kill me however you please. First I want to talk, and I want you to listen."

"And what if I kill you without a wand?"

"You wouldn't do that, it's not your style. The most powerful wizard in the world doesn't kill with guns and knives. Magic is easier, and it doesn't leave scars for muggle police to find. Let me ask you a question. Did you know I fell in love with you on the first day we met? I had myself sorted into Slytherin because you were. I fancied you from year one to year seven."

"It was obvious that you liked me. I found it quite pathetic how tried to get my attention."

"But I only ever tried to get your attention once, in our final year at Hogwarts. Do you remember, Tom?"

"The details of that day are quite fuzzy to me, I don't remember much of my youth."

"I'm sure you don't. It was my first kiss Tom, I was devastated when you said you didn't feel anything. I assume you aren't familiar with the muggle fairytale Sleeping Beauty."

"I have no time for Muggle fairytales."

"I'll spoil the ending for you, the princess is awoken from a deep sleep by a kiss from her true love. That's what I tried to do by kissing you, wake you up, show you what love is. At that time, I felt I failed. The kiss didn't wake you up, you still didn't love me, or anyone else for that matter. But as the years passed, I discovered something. The kiss woke me up, to the truth. I just need to put the pieces together.

"I've kissed many people since you, I'm sure you're aware. I've kissed young men, old men, tall, short, purebloods, muggle-borns, muggles. Once when I was incredibly drunk I kissed someone who I'm sure was part troll. Eugh... not my best memory. I've learned something from these kisses. I can sense from them the men that truly love me, and the ones that don't. I've only been kissed by two men who loved me. One is my late husband, Peter. Can you guess the other?"

"I don't know, that O'Donnell boy?"

"No, not Matt. I could tell kissing him that he cared for me, but loved someone else. You do know he married Jane, right? The other man is you. That's right Tom, you loved me. It's why you pulled me in and kissed me back so passionately. It's why you took interest when I said yes to the date with Matt. While everyone else was looking at Matt doing that crazy dance, you looked at me. It's why whenever we got to pick partners, you always picked me, unless Jane got to me first. It's why you helped me pick up my books when I dropped them on the stairs. I saw you laugh at other kids for dropping their stuff, you didn't laugh at me."

"That's preposterous! I never loved you nor anyone else."

"You say that, but I don't believe it. You know what else Tom, I think you still love me. Why are you here to kill me personally? Why not send Death Eaters to do it for you? You didn't want them to hurt me, I hear some of them are vicious murderers. With you it's a flick of the wrist and then you're dead. You also wanted to see me alive one more time. Why do you want me dead? Not because I'm a blood traitor who likes muggles, but because you see love as a weakness. I make you weak. You stopped kissing me that one day because you felt love, and love makes you weak, and we can't have a weak Voldemort can we?

"The sorting hat told me once you would never understand how I felt. I was confused by what it meant. Now I know, you will never understand that love isn't a weakness, but a strength. I'm so much stronger because I have people who love me. I was warned about you by people that I love. I was kept hidden from you by people that love me. I've been happy because I've been surrounded by people who love me and I love back. You,on the other hand, have been miserable because you have no one."

"If love was so strong, why am I about to kill you? Where are those friends of yours that kept you safe?"

"That's my doing. I love my friends so much, I didn't want them to sacrifice so much for me anymore. I told them I didn't want to run from you anymore. My love for them made them stronger. It was a sacrifice I was willing to make. That and I wanted to face you Tom. Even after everything, I still don't think I've ever gotten over you. When people look at you, they see a monster. I see the handsome young boy you were over 30 years ago." Aurora kissed him on the mouth. He didn't return it, she hadn't expected him to, but for a fraction of a second, his snakelike eyes seemed almost human.

"I can tell from a kiss if someone truly loves me, and Tom, you're still in love with me. Now I'm done, here's your wand, do what you must. Maybe if you're lucky, you'll feel some remorse." She threw the wand towards him, and stared him down as he raised up, she wasn't going to cower in fear of her murderer.

"Avada Kedarva" Voldemort shouted, without any hesitation.

She saw a flash of green light, and then, nothing.

* * *

"My Lord," One of his servants asked "Is she dead?"

"Yes." he answered quietly, "Now leave."

"Are you alright?" The servant asked, staring at the face of his master.

"Yes, I'm fine. Now leave me alone."

"Are you... crying, My Lord?"

"No I am not crying. I am Lord Voldemort. I do not cry. Now GET OUT AND LEAVE ME ALONE!" The masked servant ran out with out another word. Maybe he shouldn't have been to harsh on him. She said he was miserable because he had no one, maybe if he wouldn't be if he confided in someone. He couldn't. He couldn't let anyone see him when he was so vulnerable, so weak.

* * *

Muggle police were baffled when they found a middle age woman lying dead on the floor. They couldn't find a cause. There was no evidence of a struggle or of a break in. When they took her to get an autopsy, there was no medical cause for her to die. No heart attack, no blocked airway, no poisoning, nothing. She was perfectly healthy, except that she was dead. They ruled her cause of death as unknown. Wizards knew exactly how she died, and knew exactly who had done it, but there was one small detail even they couldn't explain. Most of You-Know-Who's victims died looking terrified, she had a satisfied smile etched on her face.

* * *

And that is the end. Did Voldemort love Aurora? That's up to you to decide. I hoped you liked it.


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